Archbishop Lagdameo's Letter to Clergy

His Excellency Angel N. Lagdameo, Archbishop of Jaro, sent the following pastoral letter to all the clergy of his archdiocese in promotion of petitioning the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI  for a new dogma of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the spiritual mother of humanity under her three aspects of Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate. We humbly encourage other Cardinals, Archbishops, and Bishops to imitate the courageous and generous Marian leadership of Archbishop Lagdameo, who is at this time the  president of the Catholic Conference of the Bishops of the Philippines.

 - Ed.

 Archdiocese of Jaro

Circular No. 215/10/2008
Prot. No. 1396/2008                                                                             April 3, 2008

To:      The Reverend Clergy of the Archdiocese of Jaro

Re:      Petition and Prayer for a Fifth Marian Dogma

On the occasion of our celebration of the Feast of Mary in the month of May, I would like that we join in prayer the petition which has been made by five cardinals to our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI for a new Dogma of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Spiritual Mother of humanity under its three aspects of Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix of All Grace and Advocate.

The five Cardinals who have petitioned Pope Benedict XVI are: Their Eminences Telesphore Cardinal Toppo, Luis Cardinal Aponte Martinez, Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil, Ernesto Cardinal Corripio Ahumada and Ricardo Cardinal Vidal. The five cardinals have contacted other cardinals and bishops in me world to join them by sending in their respective VOTUM for the Dogma which came forth from the 2005 Fatima Symposium on Marian Coredemption.

We can help to continue that momentum taken by the initiative of the five cardinals by our prayer of petition and by taking advantage of the precious teaching and preaching opportunity for our Blessed Mother and the prayed for fifth Marian Dogma.

Pope Benedict XVI's own words on Our Lady's unique cooperation in the Redemption as contained in his February 11, 2008, World Day of the Sick address has already fostered a deeper appreciation of Our Lady's coredemptive role with Jesus, when the Holy Father states:

Associated with the Sacrifice of Christ, Mary, Mater Dolorosa, who at the foot of the Cross suffers with her divine Son, is felt to be especially near by the Christian community, which gathers around its suffering members who bear the signs of the passion of the Lord. Mary suffers with those who are in affliction, with them she hopes, and she is their comfort, supporting them with her maternal help. And is it not perhaps true that the spiritual experience of very many sick people leads us to understand increasingly that "the Divine Redeemer wishes to penetrate the soul of every sufferer through the heart of his holy Mother, the first and the most exalted of all the redeemed?" (John Paul II, Salvifici Doloris, no. 26).

Through this Pastoral Letter, I would like to voice out our union with the five cardinals and-all the other cardinals and bishops to the petition to the Holy Father for the dogmatic pronouncement of the Immaculate Virgin as the Spiritual Mother of all Humanity as Co-redemptrix with her Son, Mediatrix of All Grace, and Advocate.

Sincerely yours,

+ANGEL N. LAGDAMEO

Archbishop of Jaro